To London and the O2 arena, where 20,000 die-hard motorsport fans gathered for F1 75 Live, the first event of its kind that celebrated 75 years of Formula One, and unveiled the 2025 liveries of the sport’s 10 teams. All 20 drivers and their team principals were on hand to unveil the new cars, while the audience was also treated to some star power from the likes of Gordon Ramsay, Idris Elba and Sky Brown, as Machine Gun Kelly, Take That and Temilade Openiyi aka Tems also performed at the event.
In addition to showcasing the newest liveries, F1 75 Live was also a moment for watch brands to unveil their latest designs. IWC debuted its eye-catching new timepiece with Mercedes team principal and CEO Toto Wolff. Set in the team’s signature green and black colourway, the new Big Pilot’s Watch Shock Absorber XPL Toto Wolff x Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS Formula One Team is equally impressive within: it features a shock-absorbing, specially engineered cantilever spring that is manufacture from bulk metallic glass, and all which enables it to withstand extreme G force. Limited to 100 pieces, a Super-LumiNova coating also coolly glows green in the dark.
Teams fans may have spotted Wolff wearing prototypes of the watch, but the proper wrist reveal came on stage at F1 75 Live, when Wolff presented the new car with his drivers George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli. “Congrats F1 – this is really a new milestone,” said Wolff, a 33-year veteran of the sport. “It’s such an amazing event, how you set it up.”
He was joined on stage with newly appointed team leader George Russell, who – in addition to giving an endearing shout-out to his sister on stage – was spotted in an IWC Big Pilot’s Watch Top Gun Edition “Mojave Desert”, which comes in a very on-trend sand hued ceramic. Beside him stood “one of the most hyped rookies in years” as he was introduced on stage: Andrea Kimi Antonelli. Embarking on his first F1 season, he wore on his wrist the IWC Pilot’s Watch Mark XX Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS Formula One Team, an ultra chic 40mm titanium number in the Mercedes livery.
The Schaffhausen marque also capitalised on the evening’s energy and excitement to tease the highly anticipated F1 film, which is out this summer. Starring Brad Pitt, Javier Bardem, Damson Idris and Simone Ashley, its set to be one of the blockbusters this year – with IWC as movie’s official watch brand. A production from nail-biting, seat-gripping filmmaker Jerry Bruckheimer, the F1 movie is also being produced by motorsport legend Lewis Hamilton, who called the film “as authentic a racing movie has ever been.” Despite his departure from Mercedes to Ferrari this year after 12 seasons with the German marque, Hamilton’s participation in the film added serious motorsport cred and cool – while fans could not help notice the watch on his wrist when Ferrari later came on stage (it was a Richard Mille RM 74-02Tourbillon, if you must know…).
